U Medvídků (formerly ''U Nedwidku'' or ''U černého medvěda'', ') is a historical brewery house located in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and List of cities in the Czech Republic, largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 milli ...

's Old Town. The

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

and the

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of bee ...

ranks among the oldest in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

History

Archaeologists trace the house's history back at least to the second half of the 13th century, to which time period certain barrel vaults connected to the central pillar can be dated. The house has been documented by written sources since 1404. In 1433, it was bought by Mikuláš sladovník, who acquired the brewing right for

beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...

, and after him the beer was brewed by Jakub Starostka since 1438. The house was named after later owner Jan Nedwídek, who in 1466 founded a brewery, continuously producing beer until 1898. On the stone portal of the house is preserved the house sign: two black bears, and between them the inscription ''Zde slowe od starodawna u Nedwidku'', with the year 1614, when the house was rebuilt into

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

style. After 1898, the owners were no longer able to compete with the emerging industrial breweries and therefore closed their small breweries and founded a municipal Brewery in

Holešovice Holešovice () is a district in the north of Prague situated on a meander of the River Vltava, which makes up the main part of the district Prague 7 (an insignificant part belongs to Prague 1). In the past it was a heavily industrial suburb; ...

. At the beginning of the 20th century the first Prague

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining o ...

''Tingl-Tangl'' performed at the house. Since the 1950s, the national enterprise ''RaJ1'' has run the pub. After 1989, the house was returned to its owners, the pub was extended, a new hotel was created, and beer production resumed. The hotel is notable for its preserved

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

roof trusses and Renaissance painted ceilings.

Budweiser Budvar Budweiser Budvar ( ) is a brewery in the Czech city of České Budějovice (german: Budweis), best known for its original Budweiser or Budweiser Budvar pale lager brewed using artesian water, Moravian barley and Saaz hops. Budweiser Budvar i ...

is served in the pub, as well as unfiltered beers of local production: 1466 (light lager), Medvídkovské bílé (12° wheat beer), Oldgott (13° semi-dark lager), Blackgott (14° dark special), Medvídek (15° light special) and X-BEER 33 (claimed the strongest beer in the world). Originals are also the Beer ice cream and the Pivovice X40 (beer liqueur).

Sources and external links

Official Website

References

{{coord, 50, 04, 58, N, 14, 25, 06, E, region:CZ_type:landmark, display=title 1466 establishments 15th-century establishments in Bohemia

History

Sources and external links

See also

References